Previous ECN Activities

International Women’s Day Seminar | 3 March 2026

To celebrate International Women’s Day (IWD) we were delighted to announce that this online seminar included Prof. Catherine Baker (University of Hull) and Dr. Susan Kenyon (Canterbury Christ Church University) who showcased the academic research and career journeys of women who have inspired and empowered both women and men across the political sciences. This was a webinar  primarily for the post-graduate and early career researcher audience, however it was open to all who were  interested. 

Early Career Network Online Writing Retreat | 22 and 29 January 2026

This was a free mini-series of online Writing Retreats, led by the ECN Committee’s own Aruni Samarakoon, providing dedicated, structured time for writing in a focused and supportive environment. 

Resilience, Perseverance, Impact | 20 November 2025

On 20 November 2025, the PSA Early Career Network (ECN) hosted a Welcome Event to connect new and existing members. Chaired by ECN Committee Member Leah Rea, the event featured a roundtable discussion on Resilience, Perseverance, and Impact in a shifting research environment. Panellists included Dr Antonia Vaughan, Dr James Halstead, and ECN Chair Angeliki Martinou, who generously shared their experiences and insights. 

Our panellists shared their own journeys, highlighting funding, research, and personal obstacles they faced during their PhDs. This event would not have been possible without their contributions.

Politics in an Age of Uncertainty | 21–24 July 2025 

The Political Studies Association Early Career Network’s (PSA ECN) held a very successful online annual conference for 2025, focuses on the theme of “Politics in an Age of Uncertainty”. The conference welcomed presenters from countries all over the world who shared their cutting-edge research. The early career and PhD community are at the forefront of political research, and we were delighted to provide a platform to celebrate and discuss this work. Thank you to all those who submitted papers and registered for this conference! As is the ECN tradition, we awarded prizes to the best papers across the three days of conference. Thanks to the generosity of Manchester, Bristol, and Princeton University Presses, these winners received books which will help them with their studies. Our congratulations to:

• Vlad Surdea-Hernea, The University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, ‘The Populist Spiral: How Populist Rhetoric Spreads Within Party Systems’
• Hoju Cheong, University of California, Riverside, ‘Does Electoral Reform Always Create a Better Representation? Presidential Powers and Forms of Government’
• Il Gyu Lee, University of Turku, ‘Explaining Inaction: North Korea’s Strategic Restraint in Times of Political Crisis in South Korea’
• Irine Kurtanidze, Queen Mary University of London, ‘Between Fear and Hope: Emotional Electoral Mobilisation in Hybrid Regimes – Georgia as a case study’